(One thing I should caution as you read my account of our trip, is that it is ONLY my account. I am one of 14 trip participants. Each of us would tell a different story of the same day. While we all had an amazing experience, we each noticed, learned, and interacted with this shared experience differently. In this case one story does not fit all! If you are interested in learning more, I highly recommend that you take the time to visit with several of our team members to get a more "well rounded" version of this trip!)
Monday morning was sunny, warm, and beautiful. The temps were around 80* each day. We were noticing the high altitude in that we were slightly short of breath, but we were all feeling fine. The sunshine felt so good after the long ND winter!
We ate breakfast each day at the guest home. They served coffee (of course!), bread, peanut butter and jelly, juice, bananas, oranges (which are green in ET), and pancakes/french toast/omelets, etc. . . It was a pleasant way to begin the day.
On the schedule for Monday was the fence project. While in the bus, we were told the ladies would be playing with the children and purchasing gifts for our home visits; while the men would be fencing.
When we arrived at Jemo the Ethiopian men were already hard at work. Our guys did their best to join in.
It was HARD work!
Chad was totally impressed with how hard the Ethiopian men worked. Their stamina was amazing. They also had a great plan and knew how to make the most of their resources.
Our ND boys had a very difficult time keeping up. I heard comments like "I hope they don't think we are a bunch of lazy Americans!" "I think I'm going to puke!" "Really, these muscles are just for show." and "Wow! Those men are amazing! How can they work like that!"
Some of the Ethiopian men working on the project were volunteers. Some were hired as day laborers. All were part of the Jemo church. My construction worker hubby totally enjoyed working with them. He said communication went very well - they just had to gesture a lot! He wishes he had guys willing to work as hard as these men. He is also looking for a way to get some good quality shovels, pick axes, and post hole diggers sent their way. They did an amazing job of using what they had, but the shovel heads were just not the same strength that he has access to. They also did not have a post hole digger. They did a wonderful job with the tool they had created - but a post hole digger would be a great benefit to them.
While working alongside these Ethiopian men, Chad also changed his mind about some things. Before working with them, he thought that a mini cement mixer would be a huge blessing to them. After watching how quickly they were able to mix concrete by shovel, he understood that the mixer would only slow them down.
Working with these men was certainly Chad's favorite part of the trip.
While they do not build as he does - he has nothing but admiration for their work ethic, wise use of resources, workmanship, and the joy they took in working.
While the men worked, we ladies played with the children for a bit.
I pulled out the balloons and was nearly mobbed by excited kiddos!
While blowing up balloons I noticed this beauty. Her name is Haimanote, and I was asked by her sponsor to find her while in country. Haimanote is 14, according to her paperwork, but to me she looked about 9 or 10. Children looking very small and younger than what we would expect for their age was a common theme on this trip. When we left with Helina to buy gifts for the families whose homes we would visit, I took a minute to ask her about age.
I explained that we had noticed that most of the kids looked much younger than the age they were listed as. In fact, when we got into the van the first day there our team all expressed that they were surprised how many pre-schoolers we had in the program. I had quickly corrected them, explaining that the youngest child enrolled was 4. The rest were all older.
Helina responded that the children are properly aged. Children in Ethiopia just do not age as quickly as American children for many reasons. She said, "In America, everyone look old! Sierra look 16 or 18 in Ethiopia. In America she 13. Must be the food! But once Ethiopians are about 30 we look older than Americans. You, Alicia, you look young and you are 38."
(Now you know why I love Helina so much!)
This is one of the treasures I located on Monday - Ayelu!
He is our sponsored son at Jemo.
He was sweet, quiet, and shy. He has deep soulful eyes. And I desperately wished I had brought him a new outfit as his was near rags.
I am not sure he knew what to think of us, but we sure enjoyed meeting him!
One of the highlights of my trip was Fran.
Fran retired Wednesday, and flew to Ethiopia on Thursday! She is one of the people that travel with me to Freedom Fellowship in McLaughlin, SD each month. I have spent quite a bit of time with her in the last 2 years - but I have never, ever, ever seen her have as much fun as she did in Ethiopia. It was pure joy to serve with her.
Fran spent hours on Monday painting finger nails!
As soon as we returned from our shopping adventure. We headed out on our first 2 home visits.
Our shopping adventure had been spent mostly on the bus, waiting for Helina to find the things we needed. We wished to buy coffee and sugar for each family we would visit. Coffee was easy. (Everyone in Ethiopia buys green - unroasted - coffee. Roasted coffee is too expensive. So they roast it at home and grind it as well.) Finding sugar proved impossible though. Helina explained that the government disperses sugar to all the stores, and since the next shipment was due the following day, there was no sugar to be found. So instead of sugar - we purchased oil and rice for the families. We were allowed to come into the store to pay for the items since they were fixed priced. When we purchased the lambs, later in the week, we had to stay on the bus. When negotiations are a part of the purchase, it is best to keep Westerners out of the picture!
While I did not take any photos at the small grocery store we shopped at or the street we were parked on, one thing I noticed is that Ethiopian men are very involved fathers. It is not uncommon to see fathers out and about caring for their children. I also noticed that since I had last been in Ethiopia, there is a significant decrease in begging. Helina left us alone in the bus. There was not one person who stopped to beg. Three years ago, a driver would never have left us alone without a large crown of people gathering around us.
When we had finished shopping, we returned to Jemo. About a third of our group set off on home visits. We had decided to only send 3 or 4 people on each home visit so that we would not overwhelm the families we visited. The first home visit was to the home of Hermela, the child that our Life Club kids sponsor. Ashlee (our Children's Ministries Coordinator), Grant (one of the Life Club kids), and I were chosen to visit Hermela and her mother.
(Several other group members were along on the walk because they would be a part of the next home visit.) It was a long steep walk to Hermela's compound. I worried for our social worker, Amarech, who is expecting a baby in 3 months, but we walked slowly and she was fine.
Pictured above are the steps that lead up to the compound gate.
Everyone, it seems, lives in a compound. Tall fences and gates line all the roads. On each home visit that I went, when you entered one of these gates, you entered a courtyard of sorts. Each courtyard was surrounded by metal shacks, which were the homes of the residents. In the courtyards laundry was strung and socializing seemed to occur.
Hermela seemed pleased to have us coming to her home.
She had a little kitten tied up with a piece of twine at her door.
Pictured above are Grant, Ashlee, Hermela's mother, and Hermela.
Their home was very modest.
It had a twin sized bed, with a rice bag mattress - that they shared. There was another space about the size of the bed that was unfurnished. It had a dirt floor and one bare lightbulb hanging from the ceiling. There was nothing else, that I noticed, in their home. (though it looks like there might be a bench in the photo above)
We think that there was a shared cooking space and a latrine in the common space of the compound.
Hermela's mother was pleasant. She was very quiet. She greeted us politely, accepted our gifts with gratitude, and answered our questions graciously. The visit was short. Ashlee explained that the BCC kids pray for Hermela and care about her. Then Ashlee prayed for the family.
We had not gotten very far down the road before a smiling Hermela ran to catch up with us.
She stayed close to Ashlee's side the rest of the walk.
Helina, Hermela, and Ashlee walking side by side. It was so good to meet Hermel and to see that she is a living, breathing, smiling, skipping, giggling child of God.
After leaving Hermela's home we walked along on another home visit, then we returned to Jemo.
(One of the most profound moments of my trip happened during this home visit - but I will blog about that separately.)
When we returned, the men were still hard at work.
The girls were as well.
Some of the cutest kids in the world hang out at Jemo.
This little boy is Kalide. He is all personality!
I was so impressed with the way our men worked together. My hubs is used to running the show when it comes to construction. On this project, however, he listened and followed. He respected the expertise and experience of the locals, and he was thrilled with how things went. So were the Ethiopian men. It made my heart sing every time throughout the week that the Ethiopian men waved Chad over to show him their work. He was truly proud, both of the relationship that was forming and the work that was being done. It was really cool.
I am so glad he was there!
While our guys needed breathers off and on - the Ethiopian men took breaks to play!
They played some mean soccer.
They also loved volleyball!
Breaks never lasted long.
Jim, we learned, has some serious soccer skills! They were a hit with the older boys.
I am not sure if the boys or Jim had more fun!
The day ended with a dance party.
I had teased Chad at lunch about the fact that he had figured out a way to work without music. At home he always has music blaring when he works, claiming he just can't work any other way. Our hosts had heard us joking, and so they rigged up some speakers which sent some music pumping through the air. It was really kind.
Bob and the kids were soon jamming.
Kalide, we learned, has some incredible dance moves.
Before long, Troy was line dancing with the littles.
But it was this beautiful woman who took my breath away.
While there was happy chaos all around her, her heart was turned toward worship.
While many of us were absorbed by children giggling, shovels digging, pick axes swinging, games of soccer and Frisbee being played - this one woman was completely focused on praising the King.
There is so much that I can learn from her:
-seize the moment
-Praise like no one is watching
-in ALL things give thanks
-any place can be a quiet place
- etc
The vision of her worshiping in the midst of it all is one thing I have hidden in my heart from this trip.
We left Jemo by 3:00 or so on Monday.
From Jemo we headed back to the guest house to take super fast, super freezing showers.
Then we went to the market and speed shopped for 45 minutes.
I had not been at the market on my last trip, so that was fun.
I spent 100s of Birr in record time (LOL! $1 US was worth 18.56 ET Birr when we were there.)
Then we stopped at a fancy hotel to try and get a few minutes of Wifi connection since the guest house had not had any since 10 minutes after we arrived. We had limited success with the Wifi, but succeeded enough that everyone got a quick message off to someone at home.
Our final stop for the night was a traditional dinner at the Yod.
This was another new experience for me, and I loved it! The food, the dancing, the coffee, the popcorn - all were delightful. More surprising still, Chad enjoyed it! Though he is still not the biggest fan of injera, he came to LOVE the spicy meat stews of Ethiopia.
Once again, we returned to the guest home late, exhausted - and excited for the day ahead.
As I reread this, I am understanding why I have not been able to keep my eyes open past 9 pm all week! Last week was busy! Add in jet lag and a killer cold and you have one tired momma! Last night I fell asleep while praying with Joshua . . . at 8:30. I slept until morning! And I am still tired! I think my age (no matter how young I look, Ha!) is ahowing!
